Random access technique in mobile communication system using beamforming

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure relates to a 5G or pre-5G communication system that will be provided to support higher data transfer rate following a 4G communication system such as LTE. The present disclosure relates to a method of performing random access of a terminal, said method comprising: an operation of determining the number of received beams of a base station connected to transmitted beams of the terminal; an operation of determining an area of wireless transfer resource on the basis of the number of the received beams; and an operation of transmitting random access message in the random access resource defined by the beam resource corresponding to the determined number and the wireless transfer resource corresponding to the determined area.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/428,836 filed on May 31, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/531,392 filed on May 26, 2017, which is a 371 ofInternational Application No. PCT/KR2015/012658 filed on Nov. 24, 2015,which claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2014-0166583filed on Nov. 26, 2014, the disclosures of which are herein incorporatedby reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The present disclosure relates to a random access (RA) performancescheme of a terminal in a mobile communication system and a randomaccess scheme of a terminal using beamforming.

2. Description of Related Art

In order to meet wireless data traffic demands that have increased after4th Generation (4G) communication system commercialization, efforts todevelop an improved 5G communication system or a pre-5G communicationsystem have been made. For this reason, the 5G communication system orthe pre-5G communication system is called a beyond 4G networkcommunication system or a post LTE system.

In order to achieve a high data transmission rate, an implementation ofthe 5G communication system in a mmWave band (for example, 60 GHz band)is being considered. In the 5G communication system, technologies suchas beamforming, massive Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO), FullDimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antenna, analog beam-forming, andlarge scale antenna are discussed to mitigate propagation path loss inthe mmWave band and increase a propagation transmission distance.

Further, technologies such as an evolved small cell, an advanced smallcell, a cloud Radio Access Network (cloud RAN), an ultra-dense network,Device to Device communication (D2D), a wireless backhaul, a movingnetwork, cooperative communication, Coordinated Multi-Points (CoMP), andinterference cancellation have been developed to improve the systemnetwork in the 5G communication system.

In addition, the 5G system has developed Advanced Coding Modulation(ACM) schemes such as Hybrid FSK and QAM Modulation (FQAM) and SlidingWindow Superposition Coding (SWSC), and advanced access technologiessuch as Filter Bank Multi Carrier (FBMC), Non Orthogonal Multiple Access(NOMA), and Sparse Code Multiple Access (SCMA).

One of the subjects of research on next generation communication after4G communication is to increase a system communication capacity byincreasing an available frequency band. As a frequency band to be addedto increase the frequency band, a method of using a carrier of a bandfrom 3 to 30 GHz (millimeter eave band), that is, a millimeter wavecarrier is considered rather than using a carrier of a frequency bandbelow 3 GHz used in a commercial cellular system.

The millimeter wave (mmWave) carrier of the band from 3 to 30 GHz mayhave directivity due to propagation characteristics, and a beamformingtechnique may be used for controlling interference when the carrier isoperated. In the millimeter wave band, not only a Base Station (BS) butalso a User Equipment (UE) may generate beams having a particular angleand width through multiple array antennas to perform communication. Thatis, the BS and the UE may use transmission/reception beamforming tosolve a path attenuation problem occurring in the millimeter wavecarrier. The BS and the UE may operate a plurality oftransmission/reception beamformings, and may use the plurality oftransmission/reception beamformings in random access (RA) resources.

When the UE performs random access through one random transmission beamin a state where the BS forms a plurality of reception beams, thetransmission beam of the UE may have links with one or more receptionbeams of the BS. For example, the UE may have links with a plurality ofreception beams of the BS according to whether the reception beams ofthe BS correspond to LOS (Line Of Sight) or NLOS (Non-Line Of Sight). Atthis time, the UE having a link with one reception beam of the BS may behindered in its random access by another UE having links with two ormore reception beams of the BS.

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B illustrate a concept of a random access operation ofa UE in a mobile communication system.

FIG. 1A illustrates a situation where UEs are connected to a pluralityof different reception beams and perform uplink random access.

ABS 120 may form a plurality of reception beams (for example, includingB #1 122 and B #2 124). UE #1 100 may have links 102 and 104 with atleast one of the reception beams B #1 122 and B #2 124 by using one ormore transmission beams, and UE #2 110 may have a link 114 withreception beams B #2 124 by using one or more transmission beams.

FIG. 1B illustrates an RA resource set 140 that can be used by UE #1 100and UE #2 110.

The RA resource set 140 has an RA resource structure defined by beamresources (x axis) and frequency-time resources (y axis). That is, the xaxis of the RA resource set 140 corresponds to an axis of the receptionbeam of the BS and the y axis corresponds to an axis of frequency-timeresources. For simplification, two-dimensional radio resources definedby the frequency and time are represented on the y axis in onedimension.

UE #1 100 has the links with reception beam B #1 122 and B #2 124 andthus has 10 resources in a resource area 142 by reception beam B #1 122and B #2 124 as RA resources. In contrast, UE #2 110 has the link withreception beam B #2 124 and thus has 5 resources in a resource area 144by reception beam B #2 124 as RA resources. At this time, UE #1 100 mayselect frequency-time resources R #4 146 and 148 for B #1 122 and B #2124, and UE #2 110 and perform random access, and UE #2 110 may selectonly frequency-time resources R #4 146 for B #2 124 and perform randomaccess.

When UE #1 100 and UE #2 110 simultaneously perform random access byusing the frequency-time resources R #4 146 of reception beam B #2 (thatis, collision occurs), UE #2 110 has no other available RA resources andthus fails in random access. However, UE #1 100 can use other availableRA resources, that is, frequency-time resources R #4 144 of B #1 andthus has an RA success possibility.

That is, a UE having a larger number of reception beams connectedthereto holds a dominant position in an RA competition. Further, a UEhaving a smaller number of reception beams connected thereto is at adisadvantageous position in the RA competition.

In a communication system using a millimeter wave carrier, one BS maypossess a large number of RA resources (that is, transmission/receptionbeams) from an angle of spatial resources. That is, in the millimeterwave carrier communication system, there are a plurality of receptionbeams and a plurality of UEs attempt RA for the plurality of receptionbeams.

SUMMARY

Aspects of the present disclosure are to address at least theabove-mentioned problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at leastthe advantages described below. Accordingly, since RA attempts of aplurality of UEs in a millimeter wave carrier communication system mayincrease a possibility of RA collision and interrupt access of otherUEs, a transmission/reception beam operating method to reduce RAcollision is required.

An aspect of present disclosure provides a method of mitigating aproblem of collision with other UEs.

Another aspect of the present disclosure provides an RA method based onthe number of reception beam links with the BS in the mobilecommunication system using the millimeter wave.

In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, there isprovided a method of performing random access of a UE. The methodincludes: determining a number of reception beams of a BS connected totransmission beams of the UE; determining areas of radio transmissionresources based on the number of reception beams; and transmittingrandom access message in random access resources defined by beamresources corresponding to the determined number and radio transmissionresources corresponding to the determined areas.

The present disclosure proposes a UE for performing random access. TheUE includes: a controller configured to determine a number of receptionbeams of a BS connected to transmission beams of the UE, determine areasof radio transmission resources based on the number of reception beams;and a transceiver configured to transmit random access message in randomaccess resources defined by beam resources corresponding to thedetermined number and radio transmission resources corresponding to thedetermined areas.

The present disclosure proposes a method of supporting random access.The method includes: determining a number of reception beams of a BSconnected to transmission beams of a UE; determining areas of radiotransmission resources based on the number of reception beams; andreceiving a random access message in random access resources defined bybeam resources corresponding to the determined number and radiotransmission resources corresponding to the determined areas.

The present disclosure proposes a BS supporting random access of a UE.The BS includes: a controller configured to determine a number ofreception beams connected to transmission beams of a UE and determineareas of radio transmission resources based on the number of receptionbeams; and a transceiver configured to receive a random access messagein random access resources defined by beam resources corresponding tothe determined number and radio transmission resources corresponding tothe determined areas.

According to the random access method of the present disclosure, it ispossible to effectively prevent collision between UEs based on thenumber of BS beam links connected to each UE beam in an environmentwhere a plurality of BS beams and a plurality of UE beams exist.

The random access method of the present disclosure can increase a randomaccess success possibility by preventing collision between UEs havingthe different numbers of links.

The random access method of the present disclosure can providedifferential RA success rates to UEs having different priorities.

The random access method of the present disclosure can provide an RAsupporting method to a service requiring access to a plurality of BSreception beams.

Through the RA method according to the present disclosure, an RAcollision program that may be newly generated by the introduction of aVCN (virtual cellular network) system can be solved.

Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the disclosure willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings,discloses various embodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certainembodiments of the present disclosure will be more apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B illustrate a concept of a random access method in amobile communication system using a millimeter wave band.

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B illustrate a method by which a UE determinesreception beam links according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates a structure in which UEs have different numbers ofreception beam links according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates RA resources in a case where the number of selectableRA resources is determined in proportion to the number of reception beamlinks of UEs according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates RA resources in a case where the number of selectableRA resources is equally determined regardless of the number of receptionbeam links of UEs according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6A, FIG. 6B and FIG. 6C illustrate a process in which the UEconfigures random access resource areas based on a rank according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates UEs performing random access and whether the randomaccess is successful or not according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates a random access method of the UE according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 schematically illustrates a configuration of a UE apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method of supporting random access by a BSaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 schematically illustrates a configuration of a BS apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbersare used to depict the same or similar elements, features, andstructures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the followingdescription of the present disclosure, a detailed description of knownconfigurations or functions incorporated herein will be omitted when itis determined that the detailed description may make the subject matterof the present disclosure unclear. The terms as described below aredefined in consideration of the functions in the embodiments, and themeaning of the terms may vary according to the intention of a user oroperator, convention, or the like. Therefore, the definitions of theterms should be made based on the contents throughout the specification.

In the detailed description of the present disclosure, an example ofinterpretable meanings of some terms used in the present disclosure isproposed. However, it is noted that the terms are not limited to theexamples of the construable meanings which are proposed below.

It is to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the”include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.Thus, for example, reference to “a component surface” includes referenceto one or more of such surfaces.

By the term “substantially” it is meant that the recited characteristic,parameter, or value need not be achieved exactly, but that deviations orvariations, including for example, tolerances, measurement error,measurement accuracy limitations and other factors known to skill in theart, may occur in amounts that do not preclude the effect thecharacteristic was intended to provide.

A base station is a subject communicating with a User Equipment (UE),and may be referred to as a BS, a Node B (NB), an eNode B (eNB), anAccess Point (AP) or the like.

The user equipment is a subject communicating with the BS, and may bereferred to as a UE, a Mobile Station (MS), a Mobile Equipment (ME), adevice, a terminal or the like.

Beam resources refer to one or more beams formed in a BS or a UE, andeach beam may perform its own transmission/reception operation throughradio transmission resources.

Radio transmission resources is a term collectively indicating resourcesused for radio transmission by the BS or the UE and construed as radiotransmission resources except for beam resources in the presentdisclosure. Specifically, the radio transmission resources may beresources defined by at least one of a frequency, a time, and a code.For example, the radio transmission resources may be frequencyresources, time resources, frequency-time resources, or resourcesdefined by frequency-time-code. Here, the code may be an orthogonal codesuch as a Walsh code. Hereinafter, the radio transmission resources willbe represented by frequency-time resources for convenience but it shouldbe noted that the radio transmission resources may be construed as theabove described other examples.

The present disclosure proposes a random access scheme of the UE havinglinks with a plurality of reception beams of one BS in a millimeter waveband communication environment. The random access scheme according tothe present disclosure may include at least one of three steps.

A first step corresponds to a step for grasping a number of receptionbeams of the BS connected to radio transmission resources and the UE. Asecond step corresponds to a step for selecting RA resources (forexample, frequency-time resources) according to the number of receptionbeam links and performing RA based on a competition. A third stepcorresponds to a step for an RA response (success or failure) of the BSto an RA attempt of the UE.

The first step of the random access scheme according to the presentdisclosure is described with reference to FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B.

Before performing random access, the UE should identify reception beamsof the BS to be connected thereto. Hereinafter, the reception beam ofthe BS connected to the UE is referred to as a “reception beam link”.

The present disclosure proposes two methods by which the UE identifiesthe number of reception beam links.

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B illustrates an example of a method by which the UEdetermines reception beam links according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

ABS 200 forms, for example, five reception beams 201, 202, 203, 204, and205, and a UE 210 forms one transmission beam 211.

FIG. 2A illustrates a case where the UE determines reception beams linksbased on a downlink channel estimation value.

In a first method by which the UE 210 determines reception beam links,the UE determines reception beam links based on a downlink beam channelestimation result. The UE may perform a downlink beam channel estimationthrough a beam pilot signal transmitted through the reception beams ofthe BS, determine beams (for example, 202, 203, and 204) having achannel estimation result value (for example, received signal strength(RSS)) higher than a predetermined threshold value as the reception beamlinks, and identify the number of reception beam links.

FIG. 2B illustrates a case where the UE determines reception beam linksbased on a neighbor advertisement.

In a second method by which the UE 210 identifies beam links, the UE 210uses a neighbor advertisement 220 transmitted from the BS 200. The UEmay receive the neighbor advertisement 220 and determine reception beamlinks based on information such as a beam identifier of the BS existingin the neighbor advertisement. Specifically, after performing beamscanning, the UE may determine one or more of the reception beamscorresponding to indexes (for example, reception beam indexes 2, 3, 1,and 5) within an active set existing in the neighbor advertisement asthe reception beams links and identify the number of reception beamlinks. It has been described, as an example, that the number oftransmission beams 211 is one in FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B. However, when theUE uses a plurality of beams, reception beam links of the BS may bedefined for the plurality of beams and the UE may identify the number ofreception beam links.

The second step of the random access scheme according to the presentdisclosure is described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6.

FIG. 3 illustrates a structure in which UEs have different numbers ofreception beam links.

UE #1 310, UE #2 312, and UE #3 314 have links with one or morereception beams of a BS 300. For example, UE #1 310 has links with threereception beams 301, 302, and 303 of the BS 300. UE #2 312 has linkswith two reception beams 301 and 302 of the BS 300. UE #3 314 has a linkwith one reception beam 303 of the BS 300.

FIG. 4 illustrates a case where the number of selectable RA resources isdetermined in proportion to the number of reception beam links of theUEs illustrated in FIG. 3.

Hereinafter, RA resources have a structure defined by beam resources (xaxis) and radio transmission resources (y axis). The x axis of the RAresource set corresponds to an axis of reception beams of the BS, andthey axis corresponds to an axis of radio transmission resources definedby at least one of a frequency, a time, and a code. For simplification,multidimensional radio resources defined by a combination of one or moreof the frequency, the time, and the code are represented on the y axisin one dimension.

In FIG. 4, each of the UEs does not separate (or limit or specify) areasof radio transmission resources (for example, frequency-time resources)to be used as RA resources according to the number of reception beamlinks of the UEs.

Specifically, UE #1 310 has three reception beam resource links and thushas all frequency-time resources corresponding to the three receptionbeams B 1, B 2, and B 3 as selectable RA resource areas 404, and the RAresource areas 404 include a total of 18 RA resources.

UE #2 312 has two reception beam resource links and thus has allfrequency-time resources corresponding to the two reception beams B 1and B 2 as selectable RA resource areas 402, and the RA resource areas402 include a total of 12 RA resources.

UE #3 314 has one reception beam resource link and thus has allfrequency-time resources corresponding to the one reception beam B 3 asselectable RA resource areas 400, and the RA resource areas 400 includea total of 6 RA resources.

When the selectable RA resource areas of the UE having the small numberof reception beams are small, a possibility of collision generated inrandom access is higher compared to another UE having the large numberof reception beams. This is because the UE having the small number ofreception beams may select only a subset of the selectable resourcesareas of the other UE having the large number of reception beams whenperforming RA. In terms of fairness, it is unfair to assign smallselectable RA resources to the UE having the small number of receptionbeams. That is, determining selectable resources in proportion to thenumber of reception beam links of UE causes an unfair RA successpossibility between UEs.

Accordingly, the present disclosure proposes a method of assigning thesame number of selectable RA resources to UEs regardless of the numberof reception beams but differently setting selectable resource areasaccording to the number of reception beams.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a case where the number of selectableRA resources is equally determined regardless of the number of receptionbeam links of UEs illustrated in FIG. 3.

The UE may select random access resources based on the number of linksthat the UE determined by itself, so that all UEs having the samepriority may use the same number of RA resources for random access. Thatis the present disclosure proposes a method by which each of the UEsseparates (or limits or specifies) areas of radio transmission resources(for example, frequency-time resources) to be used as RA resources basedon the number of reception beam links of the UEs.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, UE #1 700, UE #2 702, and UE #3 704 may selectdifferent selectable frequency-time resources in a state where UE #1700, UE #2 702, and UE #3 704 have three reception beam links, tworeception beam links, and one reception beam link, respectively. Forexample, each UE may be configured to select frequency-time resourceareas that are inversely proportional to the number of reception beamlinks.

Specifically, UE #1 310 that can use all three reception beams B 1, B 2,and B 3 is configured to randomly select two resources R5 and R6 amongfrequency-time resources R1 to R6 as RA resources, and then has six(=3*2) selectable resources as the RA resources. Although FIG. 5illustrates that UE #1 310 can select resources R5 and R6, the presentdisclosure is not limited thereto and other frequency-time resources canbe selected.

UE #2 312 that can use two reception beam resources B 1 and B 2 isconfigured to randomly select three resources R4 to R6 among thefrequency-time resources R1 to R6 as RA resources, and then has six(=2*3) resources as the RA resources. Although FIG. 5 illustrates thatUE #2 312 can select resources R4 to R6, the present disclosure is notlimited thereto and other frequency-time resources can be selected.

UE #3 314 that can use only one reception beam resource B 3 isconfigured to select all six frequency-time resources R1 to R6 as RAresources, and then has six (=6*1) resources as the RA resources.

Accordingly, each of UE #1 310, UE #2 312, and UE #3 314 may beconfigured to equally select six resource areas regardless of the numberof reception beam links. As described above, through the configurationof selectable RA resources, UEs having different numbers of availablereception beam links can have the same number of RA resources and UEshaving the same priority can have the fair RA success possibility.

Selectively, the UE may grasp the priority thereof as well as the numberor reception beam links and may use the priority for determining RAresources. In the present disclosure, the priority of the UE is referredto as a rank. The rank may be defined as a type of data to betransmitted through uplink, mobility of the UE (for example, in a casewhere a call change is rapidly made), or a factor (or environment)requiring quick synchronization acquisition. The rank may be dividedinto various steps. A UE having a higher rank value may be considered asa UE having a higher priority and a UE having a lower rank value may beconsidered as a UE having a lower priority.

FIG. 6A, FIG. 6B and FIG. 6C illustrate a process in which the UEconfigures random access resource areas based on the rank according tothe present disclosure.

When UEs have the same rank value, the number of resources that can beselected by each UE is configured to be the same regardless of thenumber of reception beams.

When UEs have different rank values, the random access priority of theUE becomes higher as the rank value is higher. Accordingly, randomaccess resource areas that can be selected by the UE having the highrank value become wider. When the random access resource areas becomewider, a random access success possibility becomes higher. Therefore,the UE having the higher rank value may have a higher random accesssuccess possibility compared to the UE having the lower rank value.

FIG. 6A, FIG. 6B and FIG. 6C illustrate configurations of RA resourcesby two UEs having different rank values as an example.

FIG. 6A illustrates a case where the number of reception beam links ofthe UEs is 1. A UE having a rank of 2 has a higher priority than a UEhaving a rank of 1, and the UE having the rank of 2 may be configured touse more RA resources than the UE having the rank of 1 in order toguarantee a high RA success rate of the UE having the rank of 2. Forexample, the UE having the rank of 2 may be configured to use 12 RAresource areas 600 in beam resources B 2, and the UE having the rank of1 may be configured to use 6 RA resource areas 602 corresponding to someradio transmission resources (for example, frequency-time resources) inbeam resources B 3.

FIG. 6B illustrates a case where the number of reception beam links ofthe UEs is 2. The UE having the rank of 2 has a higher priority than theUE having the rank of 1, and the UE having the rank of 2 may beconfigured to use more RA resources than the UE having the rank of 1 inorder to guarantee a high RA success rate of the UE having the rank of2. For example, the UE having the rank of 2 may be configured to use 12RA resource areas 610 corresponding to some radio transmission resources(for example, frequency-time resources) in beam resources B 2 and B 3,and the UE having the rank of 1 may be configured to use 6 RA resourceareas 612 corresponding to some radio transmission resources (forexample, frequency-time resources) in beam resources B 1 and B 2.

FIG. 6C illustrates a case where the number of reception beam links ofthe UEs is 3. The UE having the rank of 2 has a higher priority than theUE having the rank of 1, and the UE having the rank of 2 may beconfigured to use more RA resources than the UE having the rank of 1 inorder to guarantee a high RA success rate of the UE having the rank of2. For example, the UE having the rank of 2 may be configured to use 12RA resource areas 620 in some radio transmission resources (for example,frequency-time resources) in beam resources B 1, B 2, and B 3, and theUE having the rank of 1 may be configured to use 6 RA resource areas 622corresponding to some radio transmission resources (for example,frequency-time resources) in beam resources B 1, B 2, and B 3.

Preferably, some frequency-time resources may be allocated asfrequency-time resources that are not used by another UE.

Although FIG. 6A, FIG. 6B and FIG. 6C illustrate the case where thenumber of rank values is 2, the present disclosure can be applied to acase where the UEs have three or more different rank values based on thesame principle.

The third step of the random access scheme according to the presentdisclosure is described with reference to FIG. 7.

The BS and the UE may use the number (s) of links, of which links areguaranteed when RA is performed, for an RA response. If RA is successfulwithout collision in s or more links among L links when the UE performsthe RA through the L reception beam links connected to the BS, the UEmay be configured to receive a response to RA success from the BS. Forexample, when the BS makes a request for forming two or more receptionbeam links to the UE due to a service characteristic, an increase of smay guarantee the forming of a plurality of reception beam links.

At this time, s may correspond to a value larger than or equal to 1 andmay be defined as s=[L/d]. A value of d may be set to be equal to orsmaller than L. When the value of d is equal to L, s is 1. When thevalue of d is L/2, s is 2. As described above, by controlling the valueof d, a predetermined number (that is, s) or more of link connectionscan be guaranteed, and thus the UE can acquire an uplink connection withthe BS. The UE may use s in a beam uplink cooperation procedure or abeam uplink negotiation procedure. Further, the value of d may bedetermined according to a rank of the UE or a service type (or QoS) tobe transmitted by the UE through the uplink.

FIG. 7 illustrates UEs performing random access and whether the randomaccess is successful or not according to the present disclosure.

A BS 700 forms reception beam links with three UEs 710, 712, and 714. UE#1 710 has three reception beam links 720, 722, and 724 with the BS 700,UE #2 712 has two reception beam links 730 and 732 with the BS 700, andUE #3 714 has two reception beam links 740 and 742 with the BS 700. UE#1 710 and UE #3 714 successfully perform RA in the two reception beamlinks 720 and 722 and the one reception beam link 742 without collision,respectively, and UE #2 712 fails in the RA due to the generation ofcollision in all the reception beam links 730 and 732.

When values of s for all UEs are 1, UE #1 710 and UE #3 714 receive aresponse corresponding to RA success from the BS, and UE #2 712 fails inthe RA. When values of s for all UEs are 2, only UE #1 710 succeeds inthe RA, and UE #2 712 and UE #3 714 fail in the RA. The UE having failedin the RA may receive a response corresponding to the RA failure or mayreceive no response.

FIG. 8 illustrates a random access method of the UE according to thepresent disclosure.

Not all the operations described below need to be described to achievean aspect of the present disclosure. In an implementation of the methodaccording to the present disclosure, it should be noted that eachoperation is selectively included.

The UE may determine the number of reception beams of the BS connectedto transmission beams of the UE in step 800. For example, the UE mayperform an operation for estimating a channel for at least one receptionbeams of the BS, identify reception beams having a channel estimationresult larger than or equal to a threshold value, and determine theidentified number of reception beams as the number of reception beams.In another example, the UE may perform an operation for receiving aneighbor advertisement, identify reception beams identified byinformation included in the neighbor advertisement, and determine thenumber of identified reception beams as the number of reception beams.

The UE may determine areas of radio transmission resources (for example,frequency-time resources) based on the number of reception beams in step810. The UE may determine areas of radio transmission resources suchthat RA resource areas having the same size as that of another UE aredetermined regardless of the number of reception beams (if prioritiesare the same). For example, the UE may determine the areas of the radiotransmission resources in inverse proportion to the number or receptionbeams. Selectively, when determining the areas of the radio transmissionresources, the UE may further consider the priority of the UE as well asthe number of reception beams. At this time, the UE may determine theareas of the radio transmission resources corresponding to (proportionalto) a value of the priority of the UE.

The UE may attempt random access in random access resources defined bybeam resources corresponding to the reception beams of the BS and theradio transmission resources of the determined areas in step 820.

Selectively, the UE may receive a response to the attempt of the randomaccess from the BS in step 830. The received response may indicatesuccess of the random access only when the number of reception beams, ofwhich the attempt is successful, is larger than or equal to apredetermined number (s) among the connected reception beams of the BS.When links to a plurality of reception beams are required, thepredetermined number may have a value larger than or equal to 2.

Here, the radio transmission resources may be resources defined by oneof a frequency, a time, and a code.

FIG. 9 schematically illustrates a configuration of a UE apparatusaccording to the present disclosure.

A UE apparatus 900 may include a transceiver 910 for transmitting andreceiving signals or data to and from a BS, and a controller 920 forperforming the operation of the UE described in the present disclosureby controlling the transceiver 910.

It may be understood that all the operations of the UE described in thepresent disclosure are performed by a control of the controller 920. Thecontroller 920 and the transceiver 910 are not necessarily implementedas separate devices but may be implemented as one element (in the formsuch as a single chip).

FIG. 10 illustrates a method of supporting random access by a BSaccording to present disclosure.

Not all the operations described below need to be described to achievean aspect of the present disclosure. In an implementation of the methodaccording to the present disclosure, it should be noted that eachoperation is selectively included.

The BS may determine the number of reception beams connected totransmission beams of the UE in step 1000. For example, the BS mayreceive a report on a channel estimation result for the one or morereception beams from the UE, identify reception beams having a channelestimation result larger than a threshold value, and determine thenumber of identified reception beams as the number of reception beams.In another example, the UE may determine the number of reception beamsby itself and transmit reception beams corresponding to the determinednumber to the UE through a neighbor advertisement.

The BS may determine areas of radio transmission resources (for example,frequency-time resources) based on the number of reception beams in step1010. Alternatively, the BS may determine the area of the radiotransmission resources of the UE such that RA resources having the samesize as that of another UE are determined regardless of the number ofreception beams (if priorities are the same). For example, the BS mayspecify the areas of the radio transmission resources in inverseproportion to the number of the reception beams. Alternatively, whendetermining the areas of the radio transmission resources, the BS mayfurther consider the priority of the UE as well as the number ofreception beams. At this time, the BS may determine the areas of theradio transmission resources to have the size corresponding to(proportional to) a value of the priority of the UE. Selectively, inorder to indicate random access resources allocated to the UE, the BSmay transmit a message including information on the determined areas ofthe radio transmission resources and reception beams to the UE.

The BS may receive a random access message in random access resourcesdefined by beam resources corresponding to the reception beams and theradio transmission resources of the determined areas in step 1020.

Selectively, the BS may transmit a response to the random access messageto the UE in step 1030. The transmitted response may indicate success ofthe random access only when the number of reception beams, of which therandom access (message) is successful, is larger than or equal to apredetermined number (s) among the reception beams. When links to aplurality of reception beams are required, the predetermined number mayhave a value larger than or equal to 2.

Here, the radio transmission resources may be resources defined by oneof a frequency, a time, and a code.

FIG. 11 schematically illustrates a configuration of a BS apparatusaccording to the present disclosure.

A BS apparatus 1100 may include a transceiver 1110 for transmitting andreceiving signals or data to and from a UE, and a controller 1120 forperforming the operation of the BS described in the present disclosureby controlling the transceiver 1110.

It may be understood that all the operations of the BS described in thepresent disclosure are performed by a control of the controller 1120.The controller 1120 and the transceiver 1110 are not necessarilyimplemented as separate devices but may be implemented as one element(in the form such as a single chip).

It should be noted that the diagrams of the system, the RA resourceconfiguration, the UE access method, the BS access supporting method,the UE apparatus configuration, and the BS apparatus configurationillustrated in FIGS. 2 to 11 are not intended to limit the scope of thepresent disclosure. That is, it should not be construed that allcomponent parts or operations shown in FIGS. 2 to 1 are essentialcomponent elements for implementing the present disclosure, and itshould be understood that only a few component elements may implementthe present disclosure within a scope without departing the subjectmatter of the present disclosure.

The above described operations may be implemented by providing a memorydevice storing a corresponding program code to the entity of thecommunication system, the function, the base station, the load manager,or a specific structural element of the terminal. That is, the entity,the function, the load manager, or the controller of the terminalcarries out the above described operations by reading and executing theprogram code stored in the memory device by means of a processor or aCPU.

The entity, the function, the base station, the load manager, variousstructural elements of the terminal, modules and the like may beoperated by using a hardware circuit, e.g, a complementary metal oxidesemiconductor based logic circuit, firmware, software, and/or acombination of hardware and the firmware and/or software embedded in amachine readable medium. As an example, various electric configurationsand methods may be carried out by using electric circuits such astransistors, logic gates, and an application specific integrated circuit(ASIC).

While the present disclosure has been shown and described with referenceto certain embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore,the scope of the present disclosure should not be defined as beinglimited to the embodiments, but should be defined by the appended claimsand equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of performing random access of a userequipment (UE), the method comprising: determining a number of receptionbeams of a base station (BS) corresponding to transmission beams of theUE; determining radio transmission resources for performing a randomaccess for each of the reception beams; and attempting the random accessin the determined radio transmission resources through the receptionbeams, wherein a number of the radio transmission resources forperforming the random access for each of the reception beam isdetermined by dividing a total number of random access resources of theUE by the number of the reception beams, and wherein the random accessis contention-based random access.
 2. The method of claim 1, whereindetermining the number of reception beams of the BS corresponding totransmission beams of the UE comprises: estimating a channel for atleast one reception beam of the BS; and determining the number ofreception beams of the BS corresponding to transmission beams of the UE,each of the number of reception beams having a result of the channelestimation larger than or equal to a threshold value.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, wherein determining the number of reception beams of the BScorresponding to transmission beams of the UE comprises: receiving, fromthe BS, a neighbor advertisement; and determining the number ofreception beams of the BS corresponding to transmission beams of the UE,the number of reception beams identified by information included in theneighbor advertisement.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein random accessresources of a second UE having a priority equal to that of the UE andthe random access resources of the UE have an equal size, wherein thesecond UE is connected to the BS.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein thetotal number of random access resources of the UE is determined based ona priority of the UE.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprisingreceiving a message indicating a success of the random access inresponse to the attempt of the random access, wherein the message isreceived when the number of reception beams, of which performance of therandom access is successful, is larger than or equal to a predeterminednumber.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein, when links with the BSthrough at least two reception beams are needed, the predeterminednumber is larger than or equal to
 2. 8. The method of claim 1, whereinthe radio transmission resources correspond to resources defined by atleast one of a frequency, a time, or a code.
 9. A user equipment (UE)for performing random access, the UE comprising: a transceiver; and acontroller coupled with the transceiver and configured to control to:determine a number of reception beams of a base station (BS)corresponding to transmission beams of the UE, determine radiotransmission resources for performing a random access for each of thereception beams, and attempt the random access in the determined radiotransmission resources through the reception beams, wherein a number ofthe radio transmission resources for performing the random access foreach of the reception beam is determined by dividing a total number ofrandom access resources of the UE by the number of the reception beams,and wherein the random access is contention-based random access.
 10. TheUE of claim 9, wherein the controller is configured to: estimate achannel for at least one reception beam of the BS; and determine thenumber of reception beams of the BS corresponding to transmission beamsof the UE, each of the number of reception beams having a result of thechannel estimation larger than or equal to a threshold value.
 11. The UEof claim 9, wherein the controller is configured to: receive, from theBS, a neighbor advertisement; and determine the number of receptionbeams of the BS corresponding to transmission beams of the UE, thenumber of reception beams identified by information included in theneighbor advertisement.
 12. The UE of claim 9, wherein random accessresources of a second UE having a priority equal to that of the UE andthe random access resources of the UE have an equal size, wherein thesecond UE is connected to the BS.
 13. The UE of claim 9, wherein thetotal number of random access resources of the UE is determined based ona priority of the UE.
 14. The UE of claim 9, wherein the controller isconfigured to receive a message indicating a success of the randomaccess in response to the attempt of the random access, wherein themessage is received when the number of reception beams, of whichperformance of the random access is successful, is larger than or equalto a predetermined number.
 15. The UE of claim 14, wherein, when linkswith the BS through at least two reception beams are needed, thepredetermined number is larger than or equal to
 2. 16. The UE of claim9, wherein the radio transmission resources correspond to resourcesdefined by at least one of a frequency, a time, or a code.
 17. A methodof supporting random access by a base station (BS), the methodcomprising: determining a number of reception beams of the BScorresponding to transmission beams of a user equipment (UE);determining radio transmission resources for performing a random accessfor each of the reception beams; and receiving a random access messagein the determined radio transmission resources through reception beams,wherein a number of the radio transmission resources for performing therandom access for each of the reception beam is determined by dividing atotal number of random access resources of the UE by the number of thereception beams, and wherein the random access is contention-basedrandom access.
 18. A base station (BS) supporting random access of auser equipment (UE), the BS comprising: a transceiver; and a controllercoupled with the transceiver and configured to control to: determine anumber of reception beams corresponding to transmission beams of the UE,determine radio transmission resources for performing a random accessfor each of the reception beams, and receive a random access message inthe determined radio transmission resources through reception beams,wherein a number of the radio transmission resources for performing therandom access for each of the reception beam is determined by dividing atotal number of random access resources of the UE by the number of thereception beams, and wherein the random access is contention-basedrandom access.